07/03/2016 | Argentina

Lawyer Tullio Zembo today said Italians holding Argentina’s restructured debt bonds are “annoyed” as the government readies a better payment to the so called vulture funds, but added they won’t decide over a legal appeal before knowing how the negotiation concludes.

10/06/2015 | Argentina

President Fernández headed a government rally marking the Malvinas Islands Day of Sovereign Rights Reaffirmation, where she questioned the British attitude towards the United Nations resolution that urges both countries to dialogue over the islands.

12/08/2015 | Argentina

Buenos Aires province Cabinet Chief Alberto Pérez announced Governor Daniel Scioli is heading back to Argentina to be “at the front” of all government efforts to assist the victims of the severe flooding hitting Argentina’s most populated district since last week.

08/06/2015 | Argentina

After receiving a special award by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization for Argentina’s fight against hunger and poverty, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner today held a meeting with her Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarella.

27/01/2014 | Argentina

The European Union and the common euro currency are stronger than they were a year ago and much better positioned to resist any shocks stemming from a currency crisis in Argentina, Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta said today.

23/04/2014 | Argentina

During his weekly general audience at the St. Peter’s square at the Vatican, Pope Francis called to "give the unemployed their hope back." World "crisis" and "squandering" are to blame for leaving millions without jobs, the pontiff said.

19/06/2014 | Argentina

Lawyer Tullio Zembo said Italians holding Argentina’s restructured debt bonds “are willing to collect anywhere” although he considered the current legal situation that has raised default fears in the South American country “extremely difficult.”

11/11/2013 | Argentina

In an interview to the US financial newspaper, the head of Fintech Advisory, David Martinez, stressed "Argentina presents incredible long-term growth opportunities, in my view the highest in Latin America."

14/11/2013 | Argentina

Telecom Italia said today it had agreed to sell its entire stake in Telecom Argentina to Fintech Group for $960 million. The Italian telecoms group was in talks with the investment fund to sell its 22.7 stake in Telecom Argentina, as part of a new strategy aimed at raising 4 billion euros ($5.4 billion) to avoid a credit downgrade and revive its business.

04/06/2011 | Argentina

President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner returned to Buenos Aires after spending three days in Italy on an official visit that included various meetings with other heads of State, and participation in Italy’s Unification celebrations in Rome. The President arrived to the Military Base at Jorge Newbery Metropolitan airport at 8.03AM.

24/09/2013 | Argentina

By Pablo JimenezAmbito.comSpanish telecommunications giant Telefónica has confirmed the purchase of a further stake in Telco, the biggest shareholder of Telecom Italy. The company, which operates heavily in South American markets such as Argentina and Brazil, now holds two-thirds of the Italian enterprise.

01/04/2011 | Argentina

After meeting with President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, the Italian Foreign Minister, Franco Frattini unveiled his interest on finding a solution for the Italian bond holders of Argentine titles that were not part of the debt-swap and also how the negotiations between Argentina and the Paris Club continue.

31/05/2011 | Argentina

President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner arrived to Rome today at 5.20PM local time (12.20PM Argentina), to head an official two-day visit in which commercial agreements will be closed. The President will meet with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, and is also to attend the official celebrations for the Italian Unification’s 150th anniversary.

01/06/2011 | Argentina

As she continued her Italian tour, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner tried to seduce Italian businessmen into investing in Argentina, later adding that her trip meant a “restart” of the relationship between both countries.

30/01/2016 | World

27/03/2016 | World

21/10/2015 | World

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said Pope Francis was enjoying “good health,” bluntly rejecting versions that said the Argentine pontiff underwent a medical test in Tuscany and consulted a Japanese physician who treats tumors.

05/08/2015 | World

10/08/2015 | World

Greece and its international lenders were locked in marathon overnight talks to seal a multibillion-euro bailout deal, racing against a countdown to European Central Bank debt repayments falling due in days.

15/08/2015 | World

19/07/2015 | World

26/07/2015 | World

Some members of Greece's leftist government wanted to raid central bank reserves and hack taxpayer accounts to prepare a return to the drachma, according to reports that highlighted the chaos in the Syriza party.

03/08/2015 | World

12/07/2015 | World

Euro zone leaders told near-bankrupt Greece at an emergency summit that it must restore trust by enacting key reforms before they will open talks on a new financial rescue to keep it in the European currency area.

14/07/2015 | World

A secret International Monetary Fund study showed Greece needs far more debt relief than European governments have been willing to contemplate so far as fractious parties in Athens prepared to vote on a sweeping austerity package demanded by lenders.

11/07/2015 | World

05/07/2015 | World

05/07/2015 | World

Greece's finance minister Yanis Varoufakis said a 'No' vote from Greeks to a bailout package from lenders was a vote in favour of democracy and social justice that allowed Athens to call on its partners to find a fair deal.

06/07/2015 | World

The measure ensures that Greek banks must stay closed for the time being and keeps pressure on Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras a day ahead of a meeting of euro zone leaders in Brussels where he needs to present a new reform plan to try and restart rescue talks for Greece.

29/06/2015 | World

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said he would respect a potential Greek decision to stick to the path of austerity as prescribed by foreign creditors, but his government would not be the one to carry it out.

29/06/2015 | World

Tens of thousands of Greeks rallied to back their leftwing government's rejection of a tough international bailout after a clash with foreign lenders pushed Greece close to financial chaos and forced a shutdown of its banking system.

30/06/2015 | World

The missed payment, the largest in the Fund's history, is equivalent to a default, in that both imply a breach of Athens' obligations. IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said Greece can now only receive further IMF funding once the arrears are cleared.

28/06/2015 | World

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said she is disappointed with the inconclusive outcome of talks with Greece, which is teetering on the brink of a default on its debt to the IMF.

07/06/2015 | World

14/06/2015 | World

Talks on breaking a deadlock between Greece and its international creditors broke up in failure, with European leaders venting their frustration as Athens stumbled closer towards a debt default that threatens its future in the euro.

31/05/2015 | World

Italians began voting in local elections that are the biggest test for Prime Minister Matteo Renzi since his centre-left Democratic Party (PD) triumphed in a vote for the European parliament a year ago.

20/01/2015 | World

29/01/2015 | World

25/08/2014 | World

Pope Francis has become a target by Islamic State (IS) terrorists, as part of the group’s plan against the West, the Roman newspaper Il Tempo reported, citing Italian secret service and Israeli sources.

25/11/2014 | World

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13/05/2014 | World

Italy has threatened to allow refugees to cross its borders into neighbouring countries unless the European Union takes charge of a sea operation to manage the flow of migrants crossing in boats from North Africa.

26/07/2014 | World

Pope Francis called for nature to be protected from criminal abuse today during a visit in the southern Italian town of Caserta, near Naples, in a region long blighted by illegal toxic waste dumps and the pervasive grip of the Camorra mafia.

27/07/2014 | World

The wrecked Costa Concordia cruise liner limped into its last port. It was towed to the Italian city of Genoa to be broken up for scrap, two-and-a-half years after running aground and sinking with the loss of 32 lives.

30/04/2014 | World

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's eldest daughter has given her first public indication that she may consider a future in politics as her father prepares to begin a community-service sentence for tax fraud.

12/05/2014 | World

Italian naval and coast guard vessels recovered 14 bodies and rescued around 200 people after a migrant boat sank in the sea between Libya and southern Sicily, authorities said today, a day after dozens were drowned in a similar incident.

20/03/2014 | World

Employment not only involves an economic benefit but mainly men’s dignity, Pope Francis said today during an audience with workers of the Italian Steel Works company “Acciaierie di Terni” and warned the unemployed face the risk of “social exclusion.”

15/04/2014 | World

An Italian court today ordered former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to serve a tax fraud sentence by doing community service and set travel restrictions that will limit his ability to campaign for next month's European Parliament elections.

22/02/2014 | World

Italian center-left leader Matteo Renzi took office as his country's youngest prime minister, facing pressure to show immediate results after he forced out his predecessor over the slow pace of economic reforms.

18/02/2014 | World

The tribunal of Monza has officially confirmed the divorce between former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his second wife, Miriam Raffaella Bartoloni (known as Verónica Lario), local media informed.

19/02/2014 | World

Italian Prime Minister-designate Matteo Renzi said he expected his new government to be in place in time for a formal vote of confidence in parliament on Monday, after he wrapped up consultations with the main political parties.

15/02/2014 | World

Italy's president may ask young centre-left leader Matteo Renzi to become its youngest ever prime minister after a party coup that forced Enrico Letta to resign as premier of the euro zone state struggling to pull out of recession.

16/02/2014 | World

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano summoned Matteo Renzi to a meeting on Monday at which he is expected to ask the centre-left leader to form a government that must overhaul one of the most troubled economies in the euro zone.

17/02/2014 | World

Italian center-left leader Matteo Renzi said today he would begin official consultations to form a new government in the next 24 hours and expected to lay out a program of reforms to be completed within the next few months.

13/02/2014 | World

Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta said he would tender his resignation on Friday, opening the way for centre-left leader Matteo Renzi to take the helm of Italy's third government in less than a year.

02/12/2013 | World

Collapsing walls at the ancient Roman city of Pompeii have raised fresh concerns about Italy's efforts to maintain one of the world's most treasured sites, preserved for 2,000 years but now crumbling from neglect.

30/01/2014 | World

The verdict, after 12 hours of deliberations, confirmed Knox and Sollecito's original 2009 conviction. Knox's sentence was increased to 28 years and six months and Sollecito was sentenced to 25 years. Knox did not attend the retrial, however, having gone home to the United States after the previous appeal.

21/11/2013 | World

Sufficient proof that former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi had sexual relations with nightclub dancer Karima El Mahroug in exchange for cash and gifts led to his conviction in his underage prostitution case.

29/11/2013 | World

An Italian court accused former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of bribing witnesses to give false testimony in a trial linked to the case in which he has been charged with paying for sex with a minor.

13/11/2013 | World

Telecom Italia said officials along with Italy's finance police, were at its offices to gather information about its 1.3 billion-euro convertible bond and the planned sale of its stake in Telecom Argentina.

14/11/2013 | World

Prio to his meeting with with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano today, Pope Francis warned about the effects of the global crisis, considering unemployment one of its “most painful” consequences. “It is necessary to multiply efforts in order to strengthen any sign of recovery,” the pontiff stated.

15/11/2013 | World

The secretary of Italian centre-right leader Silvio Berlusconi's party said he would form a breakaway group that would back Prime Minister Enrico Letta's fragile coalition in defiance of the media magnate, who faces expulsion from parliament this month.

29/10/2013 | World

An Italian Senate Committee postponed a decision on whether a vote to expel former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from the upper house should be secret, further delaying the moment when his political fate will be sealed.

04/10/2013 | World

The Roman Catholic Church, from the lowliest priest to the pontiff himself, must strip itself of all "vanity, arrogance and pride" and humbly serve the poorest members of society, Pope Francis said today.

26/09/2013 | World

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano issued a severe rebuke to Silvio Berlusconi and ruled out taking any action to stop his conviction for tax fraud after allies threatened to walk out of parliament over his legal problems.

29/09/2013 | World

Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta will meet the president today to try to chart a way out of a deep political crisis after Silvio Berlusconi pulled his ministers out of the government and called for new elections.

02/10/2013 | World

US stocks ended lower on the second day of a partial US government shutdown shortly before congressional leaders and President Barack Obama were scheduled to meet to discuss the budget impasse and raising the US debt limit.

04/08/2013 | World

Centre-right leader Silvio Berlusconi has affirmed that Italy's shaky government, a coalition of his party with the centre left, must continue despite severe tensions after the supreme court confirmed his conviction for tax fraud.

07/08/2013 | World

The head of the party that leads Italy's government called for Silvio Berlusconi to resign from politics after he lost his appeal against a tax fraud conviction, worsening tensions in the fragile left-right coalition.

19/08/2013 | World

US stocks were little changed today, following the Dow industrials' largest weekly drop in more than a year, as traders positioned for an expected move by the Federal Reserve to scale back its economic stimulus.

01/08/2013 | World

Italy's supreme court today upheld a jail sentence against Silvio Berlusconi for tax fraud in a devastating blow to the former prime minister that could throw the country's fragile coalition government into crisis.

01/08/2013 | World

Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said a prison sentence against him for tax fraud confirmed by the country's supreme court was completely unfounded and that he would push for reforms of the justice system.

03/08/2013 | World

Italy's centre right must push through justice reform or withdraw from the coalition government, Silvio Berlusconi told his People of Freedom (PDL) party after his conviction for tax fraud was upheld by the supreme court.

29/07/2013 | World

Pope Francis said the troubled Vatican bank must become "honest and transparent" and that he will listen to the advice of a commission he has set up on whether it can be reformed or needs to be shut down altogether. He also referred to gay people saying they should not be judged or marginalized and should be integrated into society.

30/07/2013 | World

Italy's supreme court heard today Silvio Berlusconi's last appeal against a jail sentence and ban from public office for tax fraud in a case which could threaten the survival of the shaky coalition government.

24/06/2013 | World

A Milan court sentenced former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi today to seven years in jail and banned him from public office after finding him guilty of paying for sex with a minor and abusing his powers of office to cover up the affair.

12/06/2013 | World

Gazing at the glories of Rome from its best viewpoint on the Janiculum Hill, the cluster of old buildings immediately below and to the left look like yet another of the Holy City's hundreds of churches.

01/05/2013 | World

Italy's new prime minister, Enrico Letta, is preaching an end to austerity while pledging to meet European Union debt targets and his fledgling coalition is already at odds over how to pay for cuts to an unpopular housing tax.

26/04/2013 | World

Italian prime minister-designate Enrico Letta could announce a new government on Saturday and spell out its programme early next week, political sources said, while outgoing premier Mario Monti said he did not expect to be a minister.

27/04/2013 | World

Italian center-left politician Enrico Letta he had won support of other parties to form a coalition government that will include one of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's closest allies as deputy prime minister.

23/04/2013 | World

Italy's president launched urgent talks that could lead to the naming of a prime minister after two months of post-election stalemate that has weighed on a stagnant economy and alarmed Rome's partners in the euro zone.

23/04/2013 | World

Italy's president Giorgio Napolitano is set to announce on Wednesday his choice of prime minister to form a new government and pull the euro zone's third largest economy out of a two-month political rut.

24/04/2013 | World

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano asked centre-left deputy leader Enrico Letta to form a new government, signalling the end of a damaging two-month vacuum since elections in the euro zone's third largest economy in February.

21/04/2013 | World

The leader of Italy's anti-establishment 5-Star Movement, Beppe Grillo, criticised the re-election of President Giorgio Napolitano as a desperate attempt to retain power by a discredited establishment.

19/04/2013 | World

Former Prime Minister Romano Prodi withdrew from the race for the Italian presidency, deepening the chaos in the centre-left after party rebels helped his old enemy Silvio Berlusconi scupper his candidacy.

09/04/2013 | World

Italian center-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani confirmed he would meet his center-right rival Silvio Berlusconi soon, but held out little hope of a breakthrough in the political stalemate since February's inconclusive election.

25/03/2013 | World

Judges in the Italian city of Milan said today they would delay Silvio Berlusconi's trial on charges of paying for sex with a minor until April 22, pending a decision on whether to transfer the case to the city of Brescia.

16/03/2013 | World

Italy's centre-left alliance scraped a narrow victory in a vote to appoint the new speakers of parliament on but the fragile margin of success underlined how hard it will be to form a stable government after last month's deadlocked election.

23/03/2013 | World

Silvio Berlusconi, the 76-year-old leader of Italy's centre-right bloc, told thousands of supporters gathered in central Rome he was ready for a snap vote as his rival began talks to try to form a government.

07/03/2013 | World

An Italian court sentenced former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi to a one-year jail term for making public the taped contents of a confidential phone call in a case related to a 2005 banking scandal.

27/02/2013 | World

Italy's stunned political parties searched for a way forward after an inconclusive election gave none of them a parliamentary majority and threatened prolonged instability and a renewal of the European financial crisis.

02/03/2013 | World

The 5-Star Movement that emerged as Italy's largest party after a deadlocked election might support a government if it changed electoral law, cut politicians' expenses and set a two-term limit for parliamentarians, its leader has told a magazine.

25/02/2013 | World

A huge protest vote by Italians enraged by economic hardship and political corruption left the euro zone's third-largest economy facing a dangerous vacuum today after an election in which no group won enough votes to form a government.

21/02/2013 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti rowed back from comments suggesting that German Chancellor Angela Merkel had expressed opposition to his political rivals on the center-left days before an election next week.

23/02/2013 | World

The Vatican today accused the Italian media of spreading "false and damaging" reports in what it condemned as a deplorable attempt to influence cardinals who will meet in a secret conclave next month to elect a new pope.

24/02/2013 | World

Italians voted in one of the most closely watched and unpredictable elections in years, with pent-up fury over a discredited elite adding to concern it may not produce a government strong enough to lead Italy out of an economic slump.

06/02/2013 | World

07/02/2013 | World

The European Central Bank will monitor the economic impact of a strengthening euro, ECB President Mario Draghi said today, feeding expectations the climbing currency could open the door to an interest rate cut.

03/02/2013 | World

Italy's former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi announced his "last great electoral and political battle" with a sweeping promise to cut taxes and the cost of government if his center-right wins elections this month.

06/01/2013 | World

Italy's center-left coalition, led by Pier Luigi Bersani, has a comfortable lead less than two months before the election, and outgoing Prime Minister Mario Monti's bloc may win up to 15 percent, a poll said.

07/01/2013 | World

Italy's former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he had reached an agreement with the Northern League to run together in elections in February and that he wanted to be economy minister in a future centre-right government.

08/01/2013 | World

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi today slammed a panel of three "feminist and communist" female judges for ruling that he owed his estranged wife 200,000 euros ($260,000) per day as part of a divorce settlement.

30/12/2012 | World

Centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani is favorite among Italians to lead the next government, with outgoing technocrat Prime Minister Mario Monti second most popular and Silvio Berlusconi coming a close third, a poll showed.

16/12/2012 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti stood before the cold stones slabs that hold the remains of St Francis and prayed to the man who preached what the Franciscans call "the gift of discernment" - the wisdom and courage to make the right choice.

22/12/2012 | World

Italy's head of state dissolved parliament and opened the way to a February election, with doubts growing over whether outgoing Prime Minister Mario Monti will participate in what promises to be a bitter campaign.

10/12/2012 | World

European partners heaped praise on outgoing Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti today, and called for the next government to stick to his reform agenda after his surprise decision to resign rattled financial markets.

11/12/2012 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said he wanted to influence political debate in whatever role he fills after elections next year but he left his future open following speculation he may remain in politics.

14/12/2012 | World

The merchants of Venice always had an eye for a ducat to be made in the Rialto, but covering its boutique-lined marble bridge with ads for blue jeans might seem a commercial step too far, even for city built on trade.

05/12/2012 | World

Italian former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi gave a strong hint today that he would stand in next year's election, declaring he would not allow Italy to spiral into recession and saying he had been "besieged by requests" to run.

08/12/2012 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti announced today that he intended to resign once next year's budget is approved in parliament after Silvio Berlusconi's party withdrew its support for his technocrat government this week.

25/11/2012 | World

Italy's centre left voted to choose the candidate who will be the leading contender to succeed Mario Monti as prime minister after a election in March and take charge of steering the country through a deep recession.

23/11/2012 | World

During a "tour-de-table" among the EU's 27 leaders, it seemed for a moment that France, Poland, Italy and others might accept deeper cuts than originally proposed, diplomats said today after the summit broke up without agreement.

22/10/2012 | World

Six scientists and a government official were sentenced to six years in prison for manslaughter by an Italian court for failing to give adequate warning of an earthquake that killed more than 300 people in L'Aquila in 2009.

24/10/2012 | World

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi confirmed on Wednesday he would not lead his People of Freedom (PDL) party in next year's election, ending months of speculation about his political future.

13/10/2012 | World

The parties that support Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti's unelected government demanded changes to his budget on Saturday, saying it would hurt households already suffering from austerity measures.

15/10/2012 | World

The captain blamed for the sinking of the Costa Concordia cruise liner off the Italian coast in January that killed 32 people shook hands with survivors and apologized at a court hearing to decide if he should face a full trial.

17/10/2012 | World

The International Monetary Fund called on the eve of a European Union summit for both Spain and Italy to seek euro zone assistance to draw a line under the bloc's debt crisis, but Rome has rebuffed the idea and Madrid seems likely to apply alone.

10/10/2012 | World

Prime Minister Mario Monti announced an income tax cut to help low earners today, giving a rare lift to struggling Italian households ahead of parliamentary elections next year but leaving unions dissatisfied and threatening a strike.

22/08/2012 | World

A 34-year-old Italian philosopher and aspiring writer has been arrested over the murder of a Nigerian prostitute after police searching her apartment found a short story he wrote with close similarities to the killing.

12/08/2012 | World

Finance Minister Vittorio Grilli said Italy's government would overshoot its 2012 deficit goal because of worse-than-expected growth but planned no extra budget cuts because Italy was on target to meet its EU obligations.

19/08/2012 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said the end of the economic crisis in his country was in sight and that the euro zone must not let the single currency become a source of friction between the north and south in the bloc.

01/08/2012 | World

The United States took steps to freeze the US assets of five key members of the Italian-based Camorra, also known as the Naples Mafia, and one of Europe's largest criminal groups involved in kidnapping, money laundering and extortion.

26/06/2012 | World

German Chancellor Angela Merkel sought to bury once and for all the idea of common euro zone bonds, saying Europe would not share total debt liability "as long as I live", as the bloc's big four finance ministers met to narrow differences on how to solve a worsening debt crisis.

07/06/2012 | World

A 68-year-old man has confessed to last month's bombing in front of a southern Italian school that killed a 16-year-old girl and wounded 10 others, but his motive is unclear and investigations are ongoing, police said.

24/05/2012 | World

A letter purporting to be from Italy's radical left-wing Red Brigades denies that the group, responsible for numerous attacks in the 1970s, planted a bomb that killed a schoolgirl in Brindisi last week, a news agency said.

27/05/2012 | World

A force 4.0 tremor hit northern Italy on Sunday, one of the strongest of a series of aftershocks that have hit the area since it was struck by a magnitude 6.0 earthquake a week ago which killed seven people and made thousands homeless.

29/05/2012 | World

An earthquake killed at least 15 people in northern Italy today, damaging buildings and spreading panic among thousands of residents still living in tents after a tremor in the same region destroyed their homes just over a week ago.

20/05/2012 | World

A strong earthquake in northern Italy killed at least six people, injured dozens and damaged historic buildings including a famed mediaeval castle early on Sunday, waking terrified citizens and sending thousands running into the streets.

21/05/2012 | World

Italy is likely to register a strong protest vote against belt-tightening in local elections that will provide a fresh snapshot of Europe's changing political landscape a year ahead of a national ballot.

21/05/2012 | World

Thousands of people in northern Italy slept in tents and cars overnight as more than 100 aftershocks rocked the area hit by a magnitude 6.0 earthquake that killed seven people and inflicted heavy damage to centuries-old cultural sites.

13/05/2012 | World

Italy is considering using the army to protect the defence conglomerate Finmeccanica and the tax collection agency Equitalia, the targets of a series of attacks that are raising concerns about political violence, the interior minister said.

16/05/2012 | World

A decision by Greece to leave Europe's common currency zone would raise big questions about the impact on Spain, Italy and other euro zone countries with big debt loads that are undergoing structural reforms, the head of the World Bank said.

04/05/2012 | World

The Costa Concordia, the wrecked liner which has been half-submerged near the Italian island of Giglio since it hit a rock in January, could be a paradise for recreational scuba divers from around the world - if sunk instead of salvaged.

10/04/2012 | World

Iran has cut oil exports to Spain and may halt sales to Germany and Italy, Iran's English-language state television reported, in an apparent move to strengthen its position ahead of crucial talks with world powers later this week.

22/03/2012 | World

Prime Minister Mario Monti's drive to force through labour reform in Italy ran into political trouble, raising the risk that the coalition supporting him in parliament could splinter or the measures be weakened.

21/03/2012 | World

Italy's largest trade union called a general strike over labour reforms today, escalating a confrontation with Prime Minister Mario Monti and testing his resolve to transform the euro zone's third biggest economy.

08/03/2012 | World

An Italian and a British hostage kidnapped in May in Nigeria were killed today by their captors during a joint raid by British and Nigerian forces in an operation to free them, Italy's government said.

09/03/2012 | World

President Giorgio Napolitano led a chorus of condemnation of Britain's failure to inform the Italian government before launching a botched rescue mission with Nigerian forces that led to the deaths of British and Italian hostages held by a militant Islamist group.

20/02/2012 | World

Italy, Britain, the Netherlands and nine other countries called for Europe to shift its focus from tough budget cuts towards measures to create growth as the region looks headed for its second recession in three years.

24/02/2012 | World

Italy's government announced measures on Friday to end tax exemptions on commercial property owned by the Catholic Church, a move expected to add as much as 600 million euros ($805 million) to state coffers each year

03/03/2012 | World

Survivors and relatives of victims of the Costa Concordia shipwreck clamoured for truth at a pre-trial hearing in Italy, with some still waiting for identification of the remains of their loved ones 1-1/2 months after the disaster.

14/02/2012 | World

Rating agency Moody's said today it downgraded six European nations including Italy, Spain and Portugal, citing growing risks from Europe's debt crisis, and warned it may cut the triple-A ratings of France, Britain and Austria.

15/02/2012 | World

Italian prosecutors today asked a court to sentence former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi to five years in prison on charges of paying British lawyer David Mills a $600,000 bribe to lie about Berlusconi's business interests.

15/02/2012 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti warned today that the euro zone debt crisis was fuelling dangerous divisions and resentment within the currency bloc and said it was wrong to try to divide member states into "goodies and baddies".

03/02/2012 | World

Heavy snow fell in central Rome today, giving tourists a rare sight of whitened landmarks such as Saint Peter's Square and the Trevi Fountain, while the Colosseum and the Roman Forum were closed due to the icy conditions.

27/01/2012 | World

Rating agency Fitch carried out its threats and downgraded the ratings of five countries in the eurozone including Spain, Italy, Belgium, Cyprus and Slovenia. Ireland ratings where reaffirmed, informed the agency.

29/01/2012 | World

Divers searching for bodies on the Costa Concordia, the wrecked cruise ship that lies capsized off the Italian coast, suspended work on Sunday after heavy seas and strong winds caused the vessel to shift noticeably, authorities said.

23/01/2012 | World

The captain of the Costa Concordia was not under the effects of drugs when the liner hit a rock that tore a hole in the hull and caused it to capsize near the port of Italy's Giglio island, his lawyer said.

23/01/2012 | World

Divers today found two more bodies on deck number four of the Costa Concordia, the capsized cruise liner resting half-submerged near the port of Italy's Giglio island, said Franco Gabrielli, head of the civil protection agency.

29/12/2011 | World

Italy's Prime Minister Mario Monti called for significantly more firepower for the euro zone's bailout fund after a bond auction did little to ease concerns over how the country would finance public spending in the next few months.

20/01/2012 | World

Italy's cabinet approved legislation to deregulate some service sectors and professions in an effort to increase competition, cut costs to consumers and boost chronically weak growth in the euro zone's third largest economy.

21/01/2012 | World

The body of a woman was found on board Italy's capsized Costa Concordia cruise ship on Saturday, bringing the total death toll to at least 12 people, a spokesman for the rescue workers said. Twenty people are still unaccounted for. The liner struck a rock and capsized on Jan. 13 off Tuscany's Giglio island.

22/12/2011 | World

Italy's Senate passed a vote of confidence in the government of Prime Minister Mario Monti today that put the final seal on an emergency austerity budget rushed through to restore market confidence in the euro zone's third biggest economy.

22/12/2011 | World

A courtyard column of a Roman house in Pompeii collapsed, renewing concerns about the state of the site which was frozen in time when Mount Vesuvius erupted 2,000 years ago, burying inhabitants alive and preserving their homes.

28/12/2011 | World

Italian short-term debt costs halved at auction as a new package of budget austerity and an injection of cheap long-term money from the European Central Bank won Rome some respite in thin year-end markets.

15/12/2011 | World

Italy's government has called a confidence vote in parliament tomorrow to speed up approval of a 33-billion euro ($43 billion)austerity package intended to restore market confidence in the euro zone's third largest economy.

16/12/2011 | World

Minister Mario Monti's government won a parliamentary confidence vote on its austerity package today. It now moves to the Senate, where it is expected to be approved before Christmas, probably with another confidence vote.

14/12/2011 | World

Italy paid a euro era record yield of 6.47% to sell five-year paper at its first auction of longer-term debt after the EU moved towards greater fiscal integration at last week's summit, but failed to convince markets it can solve the debt crisis.

07/12/2011 | World

Italy's new Prime Minister Mario Monti, trying to push through a tough austerity package he says is vital for the country's financial salvation, faced two calls for national strikes and saw a dip in his public support today.

07/12/2011 | World

Pessimistic comments from EU paymaster Germany and new figures exposing deepening stress among Europe's banks dented financial market hopes of a turning point in the euro zone's debt crisis at a summit this week.

20/11/2011 | World

Italy's new technocrat Prime Minister Mario Monti has agreed not to run as a candidate when elections are held, Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the centre-right PDL party, said in an interview published today.

30/11/2011 | World

Prime Minister Mario Monti pledged measures to ensure that Italy meets its goal of balancing the budget even if economic prospects worsen, and said no approach for help had been made to the International Monetary Fund.

17/11/2011 | World

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti comfortably won a vote of confidence in his new government on Thursday after promising rigour and fairness in painful reforms to dig the country out of a financial crisis that threatens the entire euro zone.

17/11/2011 | World

More than 30,000 Greeks took to the streets of Athens in a protest rally that marked the first public test for a new national unity government that must impose painful spending cuts and tax rises if the country is to escape bankruptcy.

15/11/2011 | World

Prime Minister designate Mario Monti will meet Italy's president on Wednesday to present a new government to face a crisis that has brought Italy to the brink of economic disaster and endangered the entire euro zone.

12/11/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi formally resigned today, ending one of the most scandal-plagued eras in recent Italian history amid the jeers of hundreds of protestors gathered in central Rome to celebrate his departure.

14/11/2011 | World

Italy's Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti said his first day of talks for a new government were constructive and he hoped to form an administration that could take the country through to the next scheduled elections in 2013.

11/11/2011 | World

Italy's Senate approved the austerity measures demanded by the European Union to avert a euro zone meltdown.The new budget law is to clear the way for final approval of the package in the lower house tomorrow and the formation of an emergency government to replace Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

11/11/2011 | World

Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin praised outgoing fellow political veteran Silvio Berlusconi and defended his own decision to remain in power for years to come in front of an audience of foreign experts.

12/11/2011 | World

Italy's parliament gave final approval to a financial stability law today, paving the way for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to resign and make way for an emergency government headed by former European Commissioner Mario Monti.

09/11/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi confirmed he would resign today after implementing urgent economic reforms demanded by the European Union, and said Italy must then hold an election, in which he would not stand.

10/11/2011 | World

The head of the International Monetary Fund urged Italy today to act quickly fill its damaging political vacuum, and China said it was willing to help maintain global financial stability that was being threatened by the euro zone crisis.

31/10/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi faced fresh calls to resign on Monday as markets turned on Italy, pushing its borrowing costs to dangerous new levels on renewed concern about a worsening of the euro zone crisis.

04/11/2011 | World

Italy, under fierce pressure from financial markets and European peers, agreed to have the IMF monitor its progress with long delayed reforms of pensions, labor markets and privatization, senior EU sources said today.

05/11/2011 | World

Italy's press were writing off Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, with even pro-government newspapers admitting his situation looked desperate after a humiliating Group of 20 summit and the latest sell-off of Italy's bonds.

27/10/2011 | World

A deal struck by euro zone leaders today to contain the region's dangerous debt crisis was greeted skeptically in the two countries most in the firing line, Greece and Italy, with some saying politicians were dreaming.

18/10/2011 | World

A Milan judge today cleared Silvio Berlusconi in a fraud and embezzlement case related to his private broadcaster Mediaset , a rare legal victory for the weakened Italian prime minister who is a defendant in three other trials.

22/10/2011 | World

Part of a Roman wall in Pompeii's ancient ruins has collapsed, authorities said, a year after a gladiator house in the site crumbled and embarrassed Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government.

03/10/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's trial on charges he paid for sex with an underage prostitute should be put on hold for months until Italy's top court decides which judges have jurisdiction, his lawyers said today.

03/10/2011 | World

An Italian court cleared 24-year-old US citizen Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend of murdering British student Meredith Kercher in 2007 and ordered them to be set free after nearly four years in prison for a crime they always denied committing.

11/09/2011 | World

Italy's often revised 54-billion-euro austerity package enters the final stretch on Monday when cuts aimed at balancing the budget by 2013 go before the lower house of parliament, with approval due later in the week.

13/09/2011 | World

Italy's lower house of parliament is expected to approve the centre-right government's much revised austerity plan on Wednesday as Rome struggles to stem a financial market crisis now threatening the whole euro zone.

22/08/2011 | World

Italy's austerity plan aimed at warding off a worsening in the euro zone debt crisis goes to parliament today amid a tug-of-war between critics who want to weaken it and those who say it does not go far enough.

02/08/2011 | World

Financial market pressure on Italy intensified, sucking Europe's second biggest debtor nation deeper into the euro area danger zone and prompting emergency consultations in Rome and among European capitals.

10/08/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi promised an emergency decree to approve austerity measures agreed with the European Central Bank but faced union opposition over concern that the cuts would hit ordinary Italians.

15/07/2011 | World

Italy's lower house of parliament approved a 48 billion euro austerity package in a vote rushed through to try to calm a financial market storm which has sent Italian borrowing costs soaring in recent days.

20/07/2011 | World

The Italian parliament voted to allow the arrest of a deputy accused of involvement in a widening scandal that has damaged Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and highlighted growing divisions in his government.

12/07/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi tried to calm fears that Italy could be swept into a full-scale financial crisis and the opposition pledged to smooth the passage through parliament of tough debt-cutting measures today.

30/05/2011 | World

The first projections after polls closed in Italian local elections showed Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right coalition behind in the financial capital Milan and lagging badly in the southern port of Naples.

13/04/2011 | World

Italy's lower house of parliament voted to cut the length of some criminal trials, approving a measure that is likely to end Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's trial for bribing his lawyer David Mills.

15/05/2011 | World

Italians voted in local elections that will show whether a sex scandal, three corruption trials and a stagnating economy have seriously damaged Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi two years before the end of his term.

05/04/2011 | World

Italy and Tunisia signed an accord to stem a wave of illegal migrants arriving in Italy from North Africa. Immigration crisis, set off when the ouster of former Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali removed previously strict border controls, has proved a political headache for Italian government.

09/04/2011 | World

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi stepped up calls for Europe to help deal with the "human tsunami" of refugees and illegal immigrants from North Africa arriving in southern Italian islands in recent weeks.

16/03/2011 | World

The risk of the contamination of food products from nuclear radiation in Japan is limited to the specific area surrounding the damaged nuclear plant, according to a source from the World Health Organization (WHO).

19/02/2011 | World

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi pledged sweeping reforms to overhaul the justice system, stepping up an offensive against the judiciary days after being ordered to trial in a prostitution case.

08/02/2011 | World

Italian prosecutors will request an immediate trial for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who is accused of paying for sex with an underage girl and later abusing his power to get police to release her.

09/02/2011 | World

Italian prosecutors filed a request to bring Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to trial immediately on charges of paying for sex with an underaged girl and improperly pressuring police to release her from custody.

03/02/2011 | World

Italy's cabinet approved tax reforms that had been rejected by a special parliamentary panel, sparking outrage from the opposition who accused Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of riding roughshod over parliament.

15/01/2011 | World

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi lambasted an inquiry into allegations he paid for sex with a teenage nightclub dancer as a "grotesque" attempt to destroy him politically and promised it would fail.

24/12/2010 | World

An Italian anarchist group claimed responsibility for parcel bombs that wounded two people at the Swiss and Chilean embassies in Rome, a reminder of Europe's home-grown threats at a time of political instability.

17/12/2010 | World

An Italian government minister said violence during protests in Rome this week was pre-planned by political extremists, and rejected media reports that young people have become disillusioned with politicians.

09/06/2011 | Latin America

Italy condemned Brazil for refusing to extradite a former Italian left-wing guerrilla wanted for murder, saying the "shameful" decision violated international agreements and humiliated victims of terrorism.

13/11/2014 | Sports

Italy's match against Argentina in Genoa has been brought forward from Saturday to Friday, with kick-off scheduled for 3.15pm local time, because bad weather is expected in the Liguria region, the Italian federation announced.

06/04/2014 | Sports

25/04/2014 | Sports

Twenty years after Ayrton Senna died at Imola's race track, the town is gearing up to honour a Formula One driver it remembers as much for his charity and charisma as his three world championship wins.

10/09/2013 | Sports

The Netherlands and Italy became the first European teams to qualify for next year's World Cup finals, while wins for Germany, Switzerland and Russia mean they will almost certainly be joining them next month.

13/08/2013 | Sports

Paris Saint-Germain and Argentina forward Ezequiel Lavezzi took advantage of a visit to the Vatican City to 'steal the throne' from Ballon d'Or holder Lionel Messi, as he cheekily made himself comfortable in Pope Francis' chair during a team photo.

12/08/2013 | Sports

The Argentine national football team, with captain Lionel Messi a fitness worry, has trained for the first time in Rome's Stadio Olimpico, ahead of a friendly match against their Italian counterparts in honour of Pope Francis.

31/07/2012 | Sports

Italy beat Argentina 3-1 (25-17, 20-25, 25-17 and 25-23) in a men's volleyball Group A game prevailing. The team coached by Javier Webber will face Poland on next Thursday in a crucial match to keep the aim at the olympic podium.

02/08/2012 | Sports

A group of Chinese investors will pay 55 million euros for a 15 percent stake in Inter Milan, becoming the second-biggest shareholder of the Italian premier league football club, sources close to the situation said.

23/08/2012 | Sports

Internazionale Milan’s coach Andrea Stramaccioni praised teams’ capitano Javier Zanetti ahead of the 39 year-old's 800th appearance today against Romanian side Vaslui in the first leg match for a place in this season's Europa League.

17/07/2012 | Sports

11/06/2012 | Sports

Polish FA chief Grzegorz Lato has played down Spain's complaints about the pitch after Sunday's 1-1 draw with Italy at Euro 2012, denying the grass was too long and saying the Italians refused to let it be watered.

05/05/2012 | Sports

Juventus could be crowned Serie A champions on Sunday but even if they and AC Milan win to take the title race to the final round, there is a feeling in Italy that this is the weekend that will decide the scudetto.

06/12/2011 | Sports

Catania general director Pietro Lo Monaco has confirmed that the club has reached an agreement with AC Milan to transfer Argentine centre-forward Maximiliano López to the Serie A champions in the January transfer window.

05/07/2012 | Culture

Italian art experts say they have discovered about 100 previously unknown sketches and paintings by Caravaggio, the Italian baroque painter whose realistic and dramatic canvases set a new standard for Western art.

03/10/2013 | Multimedia

More than 300 people drowned or were feared dead after a boat packed with African migrants caught fire and sank off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, one of the worst disasters of Europe's chronic immigration crisis.

27/02/2013 | Sports

Argentine football great Diego Maradona denied he owed millions of euros in unpaid Italian taxes after he was mobbed by media and fans on his return to Naples where he twice led the local team to league titles.

24/06/2014 | In Depth - 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil

Uruguay striker Luis Suarez looks almost certain to be banned from the World Cup for the second successive tournament after he bit Italy's Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder during his team's 1-0 win today.

14/06/2014 | In Depth - 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil

Mario Balotelli headed the decisive goal as Italy emerged 2-1 winners over England in another high quality World Cup match in the Amazon jungle, to gain a key early advantage in a Group D containing three former cup winners.